When Dr. Rey Bosita of The Texas Back Institute talks about back health and baseball, his voice reveals his passion for both subjects. He clearly loves the game and his medical profession. This makes Dr. Bosita the ideal source to share information and opinions about the 2013 Major League Baseball All-Star game and how these athletes deal with back injuries.
Since Texas Back Institute is the Official Spine Specialist for the Frisco RoughRiders, the AA affiliate of the Texas Rangers baseball club, Bosita knows all about baseball-oriented back injuries. Before getting his thoughts on back injuries and ball players, let’s take a brief look at the 2013 MLB All-Star game.
The Fan Favorites
This year’s All-Star game will be played at Citi Field in New York City, the home field for the National Leagues New York Mets, on Tuesday evening, July 16, 2013. As always, the game will be nationally televised on Fox and the festivities begin at 7 p.m. (Central).
The MLB All-Star game owes much of its popularity to the fact that professional baseball fans can vote on the players who will take the field. Of course, this “popularity contest” format has gotten negative comments in the past – particularly from traditional baseball fans who feel that a player’s on-field abilities and performance in the first half of the season, rather than his name identification – more often than not, the popular vote reflects what type of season the starting lineup players are having. A great example of this is Baltimore Oriole’s first baseman, Chris Davis.
After being traded from the Texas Rangers to the O’s, Davis is having a remarkable year at the plate – 85 RBIs and 33 homeruns. In the All-Star voting, he finished with 8,272,243 fan votes to edge out last year’s triple-crown winner, Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers, who amassed 8,013,874 votes. Since neither plays for teams in large metropolitan markets, where vote totals can be manipulated by in-stadium promotions and both are having great years, it appears the fans made the correct, non-partisan, decision.
On the National League side, St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina was the leading vote-getter and he joins 4 other Cardinal teammates to make the Midseason Classic lineup. The NL player who has gotten lots of attention for his amazing season after being called up from the Los Angeles Dodgers minor league team, Yasiel Puig, failed to make the All-Star team this year.
2013 Major League Baseball All-Star Starting Lineups
The American League Starters include:
Joe Mauer (C – Twins)
Chris Davis (1-B – Orioles)
Robinson Cano (2-B – Yankees)
J.J. Hardy (SS – Orioles)
Miguel Cabrera (3-B – Tigers)
Mike Trout (OF – Angles)
Adam Jones (OF – Orioles)
Jose Bautista (OF – Blue Jays)
David Ortiz (DH – Red Sox)
For the National League:
Yadier Molina (Catcher – Cardinals)
Joey Votta (1B – Reds)
Brandon Phillips (2B – Reds)
Troy Tulowitzki (SS – Rockies)
David Wright (3B – Mets)
Carlos Beltran (OF – Cardinals)
Carlos Gonzales (OF – Rockies)
Bryce Harper (OF – Nationals)
Over the course of their careers, most if not all of these All-Stars have had to deal with injuries and some have been serious. Unlike football, baseball is considered a non-contact sport. However, there are more than a few collisions between runners trying to make it home and catcher trying to guard the plate and the constant swinging and throwing can take its toll on these athletes. Injuries to the spine and back are very common in this sport and we talked with Texas Back Institute surgeon, Dr. Rey Bosita to shed some light on how playing baseball can be dangerous to your back health.
Now Batting – Dr. Rey Bosita
Dr. Bosita was between appointments when we caught up with him and asked him about the most common back ailments for professional baseball players. He said, “Lumbar sprains and other muscular strains are the most common back problems for baseball players. However, the most serious injury is a disc herniation. This involves the damage to the disc, which cushions the vertebra in the spinal column. When a player has a herniated disc, there is intense pain and any movement – whether it’s swinging a bat or throwing a baseball – almost impossible.”
So, what causes a herniated disc?
Dr. Bosita noted, “It can occur as a result of repetitive stress, for example if a player is swinging a bat for hundreds of times each week. A disc can be herniated when a player takes a powerful swing and misses or it can be the result of a collision on the base paths.”
Texas Back Institute is the Official Spine Specialist for the Frisco RoughRiders team and because they are just starting their careers in professional baseball, these players tend to be younger than those in the “big show” in Major League Baseball. Does the age of a player have any effect on the likelihood of back injuries?
“Definitely,” notes Dr. Bosita. “Older players have much more wear and tear on their back muscles, discs and vertebra and the constant repetitive stress from playing more than 160 games a year can gradually wear down these back muscles and cartilage. Plus, younger players tend to be in better condition and their muscles can withstand the quick starts and stops of baseball.”
Bosita was quick to note that some older players such as retired Baltimore infielder Cal Ripkin showed remarkable conditioning and ability to play with pain. “During his famous and historic complete games run, Ripkin played with a lumbar compression. This would have incapacitated most players, but Ripkin continued to play every day with this condition.”
What type of conditioning exercises do professional baseball players use to avoid the back sprains and other, more serious injuries?
Dr. Bosita said, “Cross training exercises which are designed to improve flexibility and strength and proper pre-workout stretching and post-workout cool downs are the most important elements of a conditioning regimen. Since baseball players are required to go from a complete stop to full-speed at the crack of a bat, it’s important that they remain loose even when they are in the dugout. Stretching will help with this.”
The All-Star Team at Texas Back Institute
The All-Stars who take to the field on July 16th are at the very top of their profession. Their conditioning is impeccable and their knowledge of potential injuries is extensive. And yet, the odds are very good that at some time, in the course of a season, they will experience a back injury that can potentially end their season or career.
If these athletes, with all of their physical conditioning and knowledge can be sidelined by back injury, it goes without saying that non-athletes can also experience the pain and physical limitation of back injury or pain. When this happens, it’s a good idea to go to the specialists – the All Stars – who deal with these issues every day: Texas Back Institute.